More of Christ Less of Me

Man Appointed or God Anointed

Just imagine a finger going and sticking itself on the eye socket while the eye goes and joins itself to the palm where the finger was attached. The hand will now lack it’s movements with the eye in the way, and the finger will poke at everything as it’s now sticking out. Where the eye has to see, be the vision and then alert the brain to pass the signals to the rest of the body, the finger is now impairing it. Likewise the actual doing implementing activities of the finger is now prohibited with the eye just sitting there. It just doesn’t work!

Often man appoints where he wants himself or a particular part of the body to be. He forgets that the head of the Body of Christ is not the leader but rather Jesus Himself. It is the brain that signals to the parts as to what needs to be done, Christ is the head where the brain sits!

Man will look at the ‘gift’ of the individual and place them according to human wisdom. He will see the eye as having the gift to ‘doing things’ and hence place on the hand. Alas was the man able to discern that God had called the eye to be the visionary, to discern things, to see ahead.. to foresee even. That part has now been cut off or restricted.

The Twelve discerned their calling and to be true to that, they:

… gathered all the disciples together and said, “It would not be right for us to neglect the ministry of the word of God in order to wait on tables – Acts 6:2.

Yet they took the responsibility to ensure the complaint that reached them was dealt with. They gave the direction of what steps need to be taken and what ‘criteria’ was to be fullfilled.

Brothers and sisters, choose seven men from among you who are known to be full of the Spirit and wisdom. We will turn this responsibility over to them and will give our attention to prayer and the ministry of the word.” – Acts 6:3

Obviously the Twelve were led by the Spirit to be able to take this decision.

God doesn’t look at appearances or what we see to appoint someone into a particular calling. Instead He anoints the one according to their calling! We see Samuel seeing the oldest son of Jesse and thinking that he was the one to be anointed as King. God told him that it wasn’t so, that He looks at the heart not appearances. One after the other, Samuel went through ‘interviewing’ all the sons at home. He knew in the Spirit that these were not the chosen ones so he asked Jesse whether there were any more sons. Jesse obviously hadn’t thought that David could be the one – he was a shepherd boy and young and a musician too but God’s plans had been different! Imagine if David had been noticed by Samuel as a musician and placed in a different role? Yes David may have been able to function that way but that wasn’t God’s perfect plan, not the right fit! Yet that doesn’t mean someone with the music gifting wouldn’t have that as their specific calling either!

Likewise, Moses tried to pull out of being God’s mouthpiece claiming that he was slow of speech and slow of tongue – as if God didn’t know that. Yet it was Moses that God had chosen and even assured Moses that He would help him to speak. Due to his disobedience Aaron entered the scene and the calling was ‘split’ so to speak. We see a similar situation with Barack and Deborah.

Esther despite being a Jew was called to be the King’s wife and was placed there ‘for such a time as this’ being the vessel God used to deliver the Jews! Her appearance (beauty) was the stepping stone.

Jeremiah protested to his calling that he was couldn’t speak for he was young. God touched his lips with a coal and then asked him what he saw! The gift of prophecy was imparted as Jeremiah saw a vision then and there!

Joseph was the youngest of the lot and he was the visionary and appointed to be ruler by God – not the first born as it was customary.

God chooses people in ways that we wouldn’t in our human wisdom. It is so important for us not to analyse and reject based on the way the world would see it – age, qualifications, talents, gifts, appearance… the list goes on. It doesn’t matter if you have a degree or not – God could call you with a degree and send you along a totally different route and perhaps pursue another degree and anoint you along with that. On the other hand God could call you without a degree and anoint you in His way without the degree.

Each person is unique and has a different calling – the finger shouldn’t try to be like the eye or replace the eye or the other way round! It doesn’t work that way and in fact it actually is detrimental to the Kingdom.

Sin isn’t about doing wrong or bad but rather it is about not doing what God calls you to do and trying to do what He isn’t asking you to do.

Surrender your spirit to the leading of God’s Spirit today and know that the children of God are those who are LED BY THE SPIRIT not those who conform to the ways of the world.

Like David did, ask God to search your heart for all anxieties and ask that His Word be the lamp to your feet and the light to your path!

Seek Him wholeheartedly to know what He would want you to do and then do not slack or be distracted, but rather be like horses with blinders being true to the narrow path that God has set you on!